I Have Bad News For You (Removal Instructions) - Tutorial

I Have Bad News For You Removal Guide

What is I Have Bad News For You?

I Have Bad News For You is one of sextortion scams that can leave baffled users out of money

I Have Bad News For You scamI Have Bad News For You is a phishing email that claims that malware was injected into victims computer

I Have Bad News For You is an elaborate scheme that belongs to the extortion scam category. According to the FBI, the number of such felonies increased drastically over the summer, and it seems like blackmailing campaign is not going anywhere anytime soon.[1] Bad actors send out thousands of emails to victims around the world, hoping that many will pay due to blackmailing techniques used. The attack begins with a subject line in the email, typically showing users’ password or other sensitive information. Crooks behind I Greet You I Have Bad News For You imply that malware that injected into the user’s PC allowed them to record an embarrassing video by using systems’ camera and obtain all the social media information. Allegedly, if the victim does not pay the demanded ransom of $813 in Bitcoin, all the compromising material will be sent to victim’s friends and family. However, I Have Bad News For You is merely a scam and should not be trusted.

Summary
Name I Have Bad News For You
Type Sextortion scam
Demanded amount $813 in BTC
Symptoms The author suggests that the system was infected with a virus, and compromising material was recorded via the camera or history of porn browsing was stolen
Check for malware If you think your computer might be compromised, you should scan it with security tools like FortectIntego or SpyHunter 5Combo Cleaner

There are many similar email campaigns created (I am a spyware software developer email scam, I’m a programmer who cracked your email scam, There is nothing hidden that is not shown, Porn Blackmail, and many others), and it is not known how many different groups are using this technique, although there has been evidence discovered that even organized crime might be involved in scams like I Have Bad News For You.

What should you do if you received the email saying that it will expose your personal pictures or videos to your dearest people? Do not pay ransom is the first answer. DO NOT contact these cybercriminals, as it will only encourage them to send out more phishing email. You should simply remove I Have Bad News For You email from your inbox after forwarding it to authorities.

To make I Have Bad News For You email more believable, scammers to go extra lengths. They explain the whole situation as follows:

In the software of the router to which you were connected that day, there was a vulnerability. I first hacked this router and placed my malicious code on it. When you entered in the Internet, my trojan was installed on the operating system of your device. After that, I made a full dump of your disk (I have all your address book, history of viewing sites, all files, phone numbers and addresses of all your contacts).

All of the above is fake and, and crooks simply want to intimidate regular users, especially those who have no idea how malware works. Where did they get your password? From previous data breaches, such as Radisson Hotel data breach,[2] Ticketmaster breach,[3] and many others.

I Have Bad News For You removal from your inbox might not be enough, however. Even if the chance that your machine has been compromised is pretty low, it is still a possibility. Therefore, if you received suspicious emails, or noticed any other unnatural behavior on your PC, scan with FortectIntego, SpyHunter 5Combo Cleaner, or other security software.

Also, some sextortion scams have been noticed spreading GandCrab ransomware recently. Therefore, it is another good reason to keep your system secure from malware by installing reputable security solution.

I Have Bad News For You email virusI Have Bad News For You is a scam that belongs to sextortion category

Phishing emails are here to stay: here’s how not to fall for them

Social engineering attacks are often used by cybercriminals to reach their goals – which usually involves money extortion. Sextortion campaign works so well because it uses several layers of deceit, scaring the vulnerable and anxious recipients. Therefore, the best way to avoid getting caught off guard is by learning how to recognize the malicious email. Experts suggest following these steps:

  • Do not panic, and read the email carefully;
  • Check if the message is located in the Spam box (although some emails manage to pass through the built-in scanners);
  • Enter the subject line or the first sentence of the fake message into Google Chrome or other browser and look for results – if it is actually a scam, there will be hundreds of forum/blog posts or articles about the compromised email;
  • Scan your machine with reputable anti-malware software;
  • Consult online communities on forums, security sites and similar – do not make rational decisions!

Also, remember that phishing emails might contain malware in the attachments, so make sure you first scan them using anti-virus software before opening.

Do not contact cybercrooks and delete I Greet You I Have Bad News For You message

As we already mentioned, do not contact criminals at all times. Instead, you should contact your local authorities that deal with fraud (they will most likely ask you to forward the phishing email so do not remove I Have Bad News For You just yet). Then we highly recommend you scan your system for malware using security software like FortectIntego, SpyHunter 5Combo Cleaner or Malwarebytes to make sure that none of the cyber infections managed to slip through.

After that, you can take care of I Greet You I Have Bad News For You removal from your Inbox, although it is not mandatory. Experts also advise to change all passwords that you use and employ a password manager that could keep your accounts safe. Remember, never reuse your old passwords or use them for multiple accounts!

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What to do if failed?
If you failed to fix virus damage using Fortect Intego, submit a question to our support team and provide as much details as possible.
Fortect Intego has a free limited scanner. Fortect Intego offers more through scan when you purchase its full version. When free scanner detects issues, you can fix them using free manual repairs or you can decide to purchase the full version in order to fix them automatically.
Alternative Software
Different software has a different purpose. If you didn’t succeed in fixing corrupted files with Fortect, try running SpyHunter 5.
Alternative Software
Different software has a different purpose. If you didn’t succeed in fixing corrupted files with Intego, try running Combo Cleaner.

Getting rid of I Have Bad News For You. Follow these steps

Manual removal using Safe Mode

Important! →
Manual removal guide might be too complicated for regular computer users. It requires advanced IT knowledge to be performed correctly (if vital system files are removed or damaged, it might result in full Windows compromise), and it also might take hours to complete. Therefore, we highly advise using the automatic method provided above instead.

Step 1. Access Safe Mode with Networking

Manual malware removal should be best performed in the Safe Mode environment. 

Windows 7 / Vista / XP
  1. Click Start > Shutdown > Restart > OK.
  2. When your computer becomes active, start pressing F8 button (if that does not work, try F2, F12, Del, etc. – it all depends on your motherboard model) multiple times until you see the Advanced Boot Options window.
  3. Select Safe Mode with Networking from the list. Windows 7/XP
Windows 10 / Windows 8
  1. Right-click on Start button and select Settings.
    Settings
  2. Scroll down to pick Update & Security.
    Update and security
  3. On the left side of the window, pick Recovery.
  4. Now scroll down to find Advanced Startup section.
  5. Click Restart now.
    Reboot
  6. Select Troubleshoot. Choose an option
  7. Go to Advanced options. Advanced options
  8. Select Startup Settings. Startup settings
  9. Press Restart.
  10. Now press 5 or click 5) Enable Safe Mode with Networking. Enable safe mode

Step 2. Shut down suspicious processes

Windows Task Manager is a useful tool that shows all the processes running in the background. If malware is running a process, you need to shut it down:

  1. Press Ctrl + Shift + Esc on your keyboard to open Windows Task Manager.
  2. Click on More details.
    Open task manager
  3. Scroll down to Background processes section, and look for anything suspicious.
  4. Right-click and select Open file location.
    Open file location
  5. Go back to the process, right-click and pick End Task.
    End task
  6. Delete the contents of the malicious folder.

Step 3. Check program Startup

  1. Press Ctrl + Shift + Esc on your keyboard to open Windows Task Manager.
  2. Go to Startup tab.
  3. Right-click on the suspicious program and pick Disable.
    Startup

Step 4. Delete virus files

Malware-related files can be found in various places within your computer. Here are instructions that could help you find them:

  1. Type in Disk Cleanup in Windows search and press Enter.
    Disk cleanup
  2. Select the drive you want to clean (C: is your main drive by default and is likely to be the one that has malicious files in).
  3. Scroll through the Files to delete list and select the following:

    Temporary Internet Files
    Downloads
    Recycle Bin
    Temporary files

  4. Pick Clean up system files.
    Delete temp files
  5. You can also look for other malicious files hidden in the following folders (type these entries in Windows Search and press Enter):

    %AppData%
    %LocalAppData%
    %ProgramData%
    %WinDir%

After you are finished, reboot the PC in normal mode.

Remove I Have Bad News For You using System Restore

  • Step 1: Reboot your computer to Safe Mode with Command Prompt
    Windows 7 / Vista / XP
    1. Click Start Shutdown Restart OK.
    2. When your computer becomes active, start pressing F8 multiple times until you see the Advanced Boot Options window.
    3. Select Command Prompt from the list Select 'Safe Mode with Command Prompt'

    Windows 10 / Windows 8
    1. Press the Power button at the Windows login screen. Now press and hold Shift, which is on your keyboard, and click Restart..
    2. Now select Troubleshoot Advanced options Startup Settings and finally press Restart.
    3. Once your computer becomes active, select Enable Safe Mode with Command Prompt in Startup Settings window. Select 'Enable Safe Mode with Command Prompt'
  • Step 2: Restore your system files and settings
    1. Once the Command Prompt window shows up, enter cd restore and click Enter. Enter 'cd restore' without quotes and press 'Enter'
    2. Now type rstrui.exe and press Enter again.. Enter 'rstrui.exe' without quotes and press 'Enter'
    3. When a new window shows up, click Next and select your restore point that is prior the infiltration of I Have Bad News For You. After doing that, click Next. When 'System Restore' window shows up, select 'Next' Select your restore point and click 'Next'
    4. Now click Yes to start system restore. Click 'Yes' and start system restore
    Once you restore your system to a previous date, download and scan your computer with FortectIntego and make sure that I Have Bad News For You removal is performed successfully.

Finally, you should always think about the protection of crypto-ransomwares. In order to protect your computer from I Have Bad News For You and other ransomwares, use a reputable anti-spyware, such as FortectIntego, SpyHunter 5Combo Cleaner or Malwarebytes

How to prevent from getting spam tools

Access your website securely from any location

When you work on the domain, site, blog, or different project that requires constant management, content creation, or coding, you may need to connect to the server and content management service more often. The best solution for creating a tighter network could be a dedicated/fixed IP address.

If you make your IP address static and set to your device, you can connect to the CMS from any location and do not create any additional issues for the server or network manager that needs to monitor connections and activities. VPN software providers like Private Internet Access can help you with such settings and offer the option to control the online reputation and manage projects easily from any part of the world.

 

Recover files after data-affecting malware attacks

While much of the data can be accidentally deleted due to various reasons, malware is one of the main culprits that can cause loss of pictures, documents, videos, and other important files. More serious malware infections lead to significant data loss when your documents, system files, and images get encrypted. In particular, ransomware is is a type of malware that focuses on such functions, so your files become useless without an ability to access them.

Even though there is little to no possibility to recover after file-locking threats, some applications have features for data recovery in the system. In some cases, Data Recovery Pro can also help to recover at least some portion of your data after data-locking virus infection or general cyber infection. 

 

About the author
Gabriel E. Hall
Gabriel E. Hall - Passionate web researcher

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References
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